FP1 of the 2026 F1 Barcelona-Catalunya GP concluded with George Russell topping the timing sheets.
Green lights out and FP1 underway
As the Formula 1 cars were back on track, FP1 got underway at the 2026 F1 Barcelona-Catalunya GP. The first practice session of the weekend had seven rookies participating.
Leading the pack was rookie Leonardo Fornaroli, but he quickly returned to the pits with no time set. Carlos Sainz immediately ran into issues when he was stuck in the pit lane. The Spaniard’s Williams would not start and had to be rolled back into the pit. After the pit lane was cleared, more drivers went out to start their laps.
The first five minutes of the session saw Max Verstappen on top with a lap time of 1:18.511. Shortly behind him were Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc. It quickly turned around when the drivers had gotten a few warm-up laps in. George Russell went purple in all three sectors, setting a lap time of 1:17.414. The Brit was going about a second quicker than Liam Lawson, who had jumped to P2.
The day remained tough for Williams, with Luke Browning stuck in the pit while the team continued working on the car. Meanwhile, Sainz finally got underway 14 minutes into the session.
Sainz was noted for impeding Lawson in Turn 10, but no further investigation was deemed necessary. The next couple of minutes were relatively quiet as several drivers ran wide attempting to find the limit.
Halfway point
As the halfway point of FP1 was reached, the top three were Verstappen, Russell, and Piastri. Verstappen’s lap time was 1:17.047, with Russell three tenths behind and Piastri five tenths behind. Meanwhile, among the rookies, the one with the fastest time thus far was Paul Aron in P7 in the Audi.
Gabriel Bortoleto found his way into the gravel at Turn 8 after losing the rear and going wide.
Unfortunately for rookie Browning, he did not get the chance to go out on track, as the team still appeared to have issues with Alex Albon’s FW48.
Last laps of FP1 at Barcelona-Catalunya
With only a couple of minutes left, the drivers had to get in their last laps of the first practice session. Pierre Gasly appeared to have technical issues and had to return to the pits for the last five minutes. Meanwhile, Bortoleto revealed he had no grip and kept sliding.
The session concluded with Russell, Piastri, and Leclerc as the top three. The fastest lap time was Russell’s 1:16.363. Paul Aron was hugely impressive in 6th, comfortably outpacing Gabriel Bortoleto.
